Happily
by ShearViscosity
Summary: Series of one-shots that are related to Ever and After. Updated: Edith and Aggie clash over parenting styles, while a young Marak and Nir slip away and get into trouble.
1. I'm Still Here

I do not own the rights to the Hollow Kingdom.

This is my submission for the Hallow Hill Lodge August Writing Challenge, and is sort of a prequel to my other stories, Ever, and After. They're not necessary to read to understand, but you should still check them out if you haven't already.

**Happily**

It wasn't fair. Today was suppose to be _her_ day, not her sister's. Except, that wasn't the way things ended up. Aggie looked down at the plate in front of and used her spoon to mold the mash potatoes in one big hill, before stabbing them to bits with the fork in her left hand. It did little to make her feel any better.

"Don't play with your food," scolded her cousin, Bernard, who had stopped whatever he was talking about. Not that anybody really cared anyway. As a psychologist he had been droning on about some patient of his with **agoraphobia**, gerontophobia, **technophobia**, or some kind of phobia. Aggie had really stopped listening to him after drinking her second glass of wine. She wasn't quite sure what the number was now. Four perhaps?

Charlie, his brother, clapped him on the back loudly. "Come on, nobody really cares about that kind of stuff. This is a wedding after all, it's time to celebrate!" He paused, looking at Aggie, who had returned to stabbing her mash potatoes with her fork, with a fury. She was pretending they were Tom's face.

"Somebody has passive agressive tendencies," muttered Bernard under his breath.

Charlie just glared at him. "Well of course she does, and who can blame her? Her bloke went and married her own sister. She has every right to be mad. Speaking of which," he pulled a bag out of his pocket and handed it to her, out of Bernard's disproving sight. "Something to help take the edge off," he whispered.

Aggie had an idea of what it was, and had only experimented with drugs a bit in college. Just enough to realize the headache the next day was not worth it. But tonight... tonight she was willing to deal with the headache.

* * *

Twenty-four hours ago, things were quite different. She had been happily engaged, and was just a day away from getting married. Except at the wedding rehearsal, things had turned from happily, into a disaster.

The rehearsal was outside, in a tree circle. There were chairs for the guests to sit, and an arch for where the ceremony was to take place the following day. Aggie had dyed her hair bright red for the event, to show her love for Tom, her groom. The priest had just reached the part about objections, when to her surprise, a voice spoke out to her left. It was her sister, her maid of honor dressed in a bright red taffeta dress, who had shouted, "I object" out of the blue.

All heads turned toward her as she continued. "Tom can't marry Aggie, because... because I love him."

Aggie turned back to Tom, trying to figure out what was going on, except he had already left her right side to embrace her sister. His response was, "I'm so glad you said something, because the truth is, I love you too." Then, to Aggie's horror, they kissed.

After pulling back, her traitor of a sister then said, "Oh Tom, since all the family is here, why don't we get married, tomorrow? I'm so sorry Aggie, but if I didn't say something now, I would have regretted it for the rest of my life."

"As would I," added Tom.

"We never meant for this to happen, but it just did," confessed Sally, shaking her blond ringlets on her head, "With you off finishing school, and us planning the wedding, we just, connected. Can you forgive me?"

All the attention was on Aggie, holding their breath for her reply. Of course she couldn't forgive her sister. How could she forgive her for ruining her day? But starring into her bright blue eyes, and pretty face, and with her mother glaring behind her, showing where she stood on the matter, Aggie didn't have a chance. Not unless she wanted to come off as a heartless bitch. So Aggie, being the better person, finally replied, "Of course."

Her sister, grateful for the forgiveness, ran over to hug her. At this point, their mother spoke up, "It's a good thing Aggie that you're so big and tall. Otherwise I don't know how we would have managed to find another dress in time."

Her dress? Wasn't it enough that she was having to give her groom, her wedding, her future over to her sister, but now her dress as well? Aggie had even been the one who suggested the Reserve in the first place instead of the traditional church, which her sister had balked at. But here she was now, gushing over how beautiful everything was, and it had truly been her idea in the first place. It was enough to make a person sick. Enough to make Aggie pondered the merits of getting sick on her sister.

* * *

That night, Aggie had left her bridemaids, mother, and sister after surrendering her wedding dress. Watching her mother perform the alterations, while the others giggled on with suggestions, was too much to bear. There were acting as if it had always been Sally's wedding. The only hint of it being Aggie's was the comment from one airhead cousin, "Well I guess we don't have to worry about the something borrowed part," she said with a giggle. The others agreed.

As she slipped out silently of the room, her mother caught a glimpse of her. Grabbing her by the arm, out in the hallway she murmured out of the others earshot, "Now Agnes, I know this is hard for you. But let's face it, Sally and Tom make a much better match than you did. He's moving up in the world and needs a wife befitting of his station. Perhaps if you acted a bit more... acceptable, things would have been different."

Aggie nodded her head, fighting back the tears. Acceptable. Presentable. Normal. All words that she had heard over the years, but Tom never seemed to mind. In fact, he said they amused him greatly. Aggie broke out of her mother's embrace and continued down the hallway. "Things always happen for a reason," called her mother from behind. Aggie couldn't imagine a reason for this.

She had just reached her room, when she stopped. Instead she went passed her room, and knocked on the next door. Tom opened it and sighed once he saw who it was.

Not paying attention she asked quietly, "I need to know why."

"Why what?"

"Why her and not me."

Tom swore under his breath, and opened the door to his room. As she entered, he saw that a bottle of gin opened on a small table with two chairs. Running his fingers through his hair, he motioned for Aggie to take a seat as he did. She refused, and continued to stand.

"Bloody hell," he began, taking a swig of the gin. "Look Aggie, I never meant for this to happen. But it did. I loved being with you, but Sally isn't as eccentric as you are, and at the end of a hard day's work, that's what I want."

So that was it. He wanted somebody traditional. Acceptable. Presentable. Normal. He wanted a wife who would wear pearls and dresses, bidding his every whim. He wanted a wife who cooked and cleaned all day, while tending the many children. He wanted a wife who would have a nice, warm, meal waiting for him when he returned home at night along with his slippers.

And Sally of course was the perfect choice. She had spent her whole life dreaming of being a housewife, which is what he wanted. She was pretty, polite, could cook without burning the food or house down for that matter, knew how to sew, do laundry, all the things that Aggie either couldn't do, didn't know how to do, or never bothered learning. Aggie had been a fun adventure, but Tom was now ready to grow up and find himself a real wife.

"I thought you liked my eccentricities," Aggie whispered quietly, with a lump in her throat.

"I did, but after a while, they got old. I thought that they were just a phase you were going through, that you would outgrow someday."

Not bothering to hear another word, Aggie fled from the room, with tears escaping her eyes. A phase. That's what he had said, it's what her family had said. The dyeing of the hair, political views, taste in music, spending hours gazing up at the clouds while not paying attention to the **sunburn** developing on her face, the hippie clothes, love of sports, general awkwardness, they had always said was a phase.

She had first started the hair dyeing when she was started college as a freshman. She was rather tall for being a girl, and was a bit big boned. Not the little thin thing her sister was. Aggie had thick, dark brown hair and was not a beauty by any means. She was somewhat shy, and insecure when she started at the university, so as a means of distraction, she had her hair dyed a bright green, her favorite color. Sure enough it became a conversation starter, and was a great way to meet people and overcome her shyness. It soon became her thing, what she was know for among her friends. She would dye it orange for Halloween, red and green for Christmas, pink for Valentine's day. When holidays weren't close at hand, she would it whatever color she felt like, blue, purple, or three colors at once. It was her way of rebelling, of showing independence, and just being free.

As for the others, it was true she could sometimes be rather absented-minded, but Tom never minded. Till now. He was becoming a great lawyer and had political ambition, and he needed a wife that would look pretty on his arm, be an asset to him, not one with crazy hair, that couldn't make up her mind of what her major was.

* * *

And here she was, a day later, sitting at the reject table. She was sat here, in the corner and out of sight for fear that she would make a scene. Her hippie cousin with the long hair who did drugs at her left, his brother who nobody wanted to listen ramble on about his patients on his right, and her old grandmother who had dementia sitting across from her.

Gazing down, at the once again full glass of wine, she took another swig and made up her mind. Screw them. Screw them all. She was not going to let them put her in a corner so she wouldn't make a scene. She wasn't going act all docile and alright with what had happened. She was angry. She was angry and she was going to do something about it.

She got up, and threw her napkin on the table with a determined look on her face. Charlie, taking notice of the look on Aggie's face said with a grin, "Give 'em hell Aggie."

She strode over slowly, to where the wedding cake was, on the center of the dance floor. Without a second thought she picked up top tier, taking notice of the blond bride on top. Sally had this planned then. Well fine, that would make what Aggie was about to do all the better.

Carrying the cake in her arms, she walked over to where her sister and new husband were greeting Tom's mother, that Aggie knew for a fact that her sister wasn't fond of, but still had a grin on face. It was then Sally noticed Aggie, along with what she was carrying. "What are you doing?" she asked in horror.

"What am I doing?" said Aggie, with a slight slur, "What are you doing? I thought you said you didn't envy me Mildred as a mother-in-law, calling her an old harpy."

Mildred, the old harpy, turned a shade of purple that matched the shade of wine Aggie had been drinking earlier, with Sally's face following. "I think you must be mistaken dear sister," she said through gritted teeth. "Obviously somebody has been drinking too much wine."

She started to make a shooing motion, but Aggie wasn't having any of it. "I'm not mistaken. I'm not mistaken in the fact that my sister is a loud-mouth, back-stabbing, boyfriend-stealing bitch." It was then that Aggie noticed that the rest of the room had gone quiet, taking notice of what was going on. Her own mother was hissing at her, telling her to stop. But Aggie wasn't going to stop, she was just getting started.

Her sister gasped in horror, as the top tier of the wedding cake was smashed on her face and dress. Tom was just as speechless. But Aggie still wasn't done. Off to the side, one of the servers had paused to watch the scene unfold, still carrying a replacement aujus for the buffet. Aggie took the chaffing dish out of his arms, and then poured it slowly over both Tom and Sally. She took note of the state of Sally's dress. Now Sally would consider the dress just as ruined as Aggie did when Sally put it on.

Satisfied with her work, she placed the dish back into the waiter's arms. "Now I'm done." And with those words, Aggie walked out of the ballroom, oblivious to all the stunned looks on the faces of those she had left behind. There was even an extra spring in her step.

* * *

Once she was outside she just started walking. Walking away from her family, from Tom, and all her problems. She felt absolutely giddy as she twirled under the night sky. It was probably the alcohol making her feel all giggly, but Aggie paid no attention. Instead she just plopped on the ground in her ugly pink dress that clashed terribly with her bright red hair. On her right was the huge lake, and on her left was the tree circle where her sister had gotten married earlier. Next to her was the bag that Charlie had given her eariler. In it was a joint along with a lighter.

She figured, what the hell, and lit it. Unfortunately, when it came to smoking, she was still a bit of an **amateur**, so she immediately began to choke upon inhaling the smoke. Gasping for air quickly put an end to that little experiment, and so Aggie was left lying on her back while looking up at the dark sky above her. Her head was starting to feel a little woozy due to the alcohol in her system, but Aggie didn't notice. What she noticed was her heart beating rapidly, she could hear it in her head.

She crawled over to the lake to get a look at herself. Her bright hair had escaped the bobby pins, sticking out in weird angles, making her look as if she had escaped a mental institution. Her dress stained with dirt, mud, and even some cake and aujus did nothing to dispel the illusion. She hated the dress the most. It was from her cousin Emma, and was a hideous pink that didn't go with her hair at all. In a fit of rage, she tore it off and stomped on it into the ground, kicking the shoes that matched off to be more comfortable. Even with the dress and the shoes gone, she was still wearing a light, silk, slip with pantyhose. Not completely comfortable, but better than before. At least they were her own.

At that moment it hit her, what she had just done. She had just dumped cake and aujus on her sister, and Tom. In front of all their family and friends. Instead of sucking it up like a big girl, she had acted just like they feared. It had felt incredible, empowering even, but she had just proved them right. She was a freak. Eccentric. Embarrassing. Not normal. Not presentable. Aggie then started sobbing as it sunk it. She would forever be known as crazy aunt Aggie, sitting at the reject table.

It was then the tears started spilling again. Unlike her sister, she had never been that much of a pretty crier. Looking into her reflection, she noticed that there was a new shape behind her, a giant human who looked to be covered in owl feathers.

* * *

Marak Owlfeathers never planned to marry that night. He was still in the mourning period for his father, Marak Boartusk, doing proper duties before searching for a bride. Sometimes even the best laid plans go astray, however.

He had been inspecting the border of his lands, when he head for the Truce Circle. Humans earlier that day had held a wedding, and Marak was checking on whether or not they had cleaned up their mess. If not, some goblin revenge was in order. On his way he couldn't help but think it was a pity that he still had to wait for a bride. So many young women, they surely wouldn't miss just one. The only consolation was that the event was just as **worthless** for the elf king, whose father may be aging, but hadn't quite died yet. Marak had odds that it would happen within six months, while Paris, his advisor had it about a year.

Upon reaching the Truce Circle, he came across a sight that gave him pause. A woman, by the lake. Since the area had become a Reserve, goblins and elves gradually became accustomed to humans in the lands, and merely kept a close eye on them. It was why Marak slowly backed up instead of approaching the girl. Unfortunately, he didn't realize that his reflection had appeared in the lake which she had noticed.

She turned around, and Marak could see that she had been crying. It was then that he noticed the rumpled dress discarded next to her, and the fact that she was wearing undergarments. Not having experience with any human females other than his mother, who hardly cried, Marak wanted to get out of there fast. Fate was not on his side.

The girl, looked up at him, and asked something Marak never expected, "Do you think I'm pretty?"

He blinked his yellow eyes at her. Out of all the questions he had thought would come out of her mouth, that was not one of them.

"Um..." he began, unsure of what to say. He took in her wild hair, the red surely wasn't a natural color, and puffy eyes. He tried not to look below the head. His mother had always drummed that into him, to be a gentleman, and proper. With her appearance, he supposed that she wasn't pretty by elf standards, but they were always finicky creatures anyway. But by goblin standards, she was beautiful.

"Do you think I'm pretty?" she repeated.

He finally answered her with, "Yes."

"You're just saying that to make me feel better. Tom doesn't think I'm pretty. He thinks I'm ugly, and eccentric and not normal," she said sniffing trying to hold back the tears.

Not sure what to do, Marak sat down next to her, and brought out a handkerchief he had in pocket. "Blow," he instructed her, holding it up to her nose. She did as she was told, looking back up at him, doe brown eyes, into his giant yellow eyes.

Finished, she looked at her hands in her lap. "They all think I'm a freak," she said quietly.

"They?" he inquired.

"My family. Tom who was suppose to be my fiance but married my sister instead tonight. Maybe they're right, maybe there is something wrong with me."

"No," stated Marak firmly. "They're the wrong ones. Everybody comes in different shapes, sizes, colors, packages, and if they can't appreciate the variety then they're the wrong ones."

For the first time that night, the girl smiled back up at him. It was not pretty like an elf's, but was warm, and welcoming, like her eyes. "You're sweet," she said, and for the second time that night she surprised him. By kissing him.

Up to that point, Marak had never been so close to a human. Let alone a young female, who had been crying on his shoulder a couple seconds ago. And here she was, _kissing_ him of all things. The surprising thing was, he _liked_ it.

She parted from him, and looked back at him in surprise. "For being a figment of my imagination, you sure feel real."

Real? It was then he realized that his lips tasted of alcohol, apparently she had been drinking. It certainly explained why she hadn't run away in terror like most human females do once they lay eyes upon a goblin. She was drunk and thought he was just part of it. Come to think of it, her words had been a bit slurred together too.

"Did you get revenge?"

"Revenge?" she responded slowly, unsure of whether or not she heard him right.

"Revenge is a goblin's best friend. Did you get it on your fiance and sister?"

She giggled, caught on the 'best friend' line. She had always thought diamonds were a goblin's best friend. Or was that a girl's? She was too drunk to care. "Does smashing the cake on the bride and dumping aujus on them both, and then walking out after informing her mother-in-law that my sister thinks she's a harpy count as revenge?"

The image made Marak smiled. "I suppose."

"Well then yes, I got revenge."

Marak smiled. If she hadn't he would have done so himself, but he was proud it was her, standing up for herself. He rose to his feet, and pulled her up with him, wobbling slightly. The alcohol was having more of an affect now. He then made up his mind. That night he was taking his bride. His advisers and the other goblins would be surprised that he was breaking tradition, but as he scooped her up into his arms, he couldn't help but think, it would be the first of many traditions she'd break.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked with a laugh.

"A place where you'll fit right in with your eccentricities. A place where they'll be loved."

That night, Aggie would get the wedding she had felt she was cheated out of. The only difference was the groom, location, dress, and the fact that she wouldn't remember it at all the next day. But none of that would matter to Aggie. What would matter would be the fact that for the first time in her life, she felt accepted and like truly she belonged.

* * *

The next day, Aggie's family realized she was missing. They found her dress, and shoes next to the lake, but nothing else. Even after dredging the lake, there still was no sign of her. Eventually the family gave up, thinking she had wandered off somewhere, or had left the family completely after the scene she had caused the night before.

As for Sally and Tom, they lived happily ever after until fifteen years and four kids later into their marriage, Sally discovered that Tom was having an affair with his secretary. Then she divorced him and took him for everything he was worth, ruining his image and political ambition in the process.

She couldn't help but wonder if Aggie had ever gotten married, and had a happy one, unlike Sally's. As the years had passed, Sally did have some guilt about how she slighted her when she married Tom. Then of course, it came out that Tom hadn't just had one affair over the years, but several, almost as if karma was coming back to get her. However, she would have been pleased to learn, that Aggie was far happier with her husband than she had ever been before in her life, and had no regrets about not marrying Tom.

****Author's Note****

Hope you enjoyed it. It's finished for now, but have a couple more ideas for one-shot chapters.

I would like to add, that this takes place during 196o's. We all know it as the time of hippies, drugs, Vietnam, social unrest etc... but just as much as there were those wanting to change and acting liberally, there were still those clinging to the old ways, and those who were caught in between, like Aggie. Aggie is unsure of herself, and has never quite fit in, which leads to some insecurities. But then Marak comes along, and takes her to the goblins who love her, and over time develops into the confident woman you see in After and Ever. I just wanted to show that she wasn't always like that.

I also figured Aggie needed a husband who was calm and collected. Originally Marak was going to be a sloth, but upon research I found sloths live in South America and couldn't justify a reason for them getting into the goblin gene pool. An owl is something that I haven't seen before in fanfiction, some have the yellow eyes I mentioned Aggie loving, and aren't known for being as viscous as some other birds.

Finally, I went back to find the year, and saw that I had written Edith being kidnapped before Aggie, which clashes with Marak's comment about the elves. I have gone back and changed the years to show Aggie was taken first. Other than that, Chapter 2 in After is the same.

On a random side note, the hair dyeing thing was actually based on somebody I know from college who did such a thing for the same reasons as Aggie. So if she's out there reading this, thanks for the inspiration!

So read, enjoy, and review!


	2. I'll Try

I don't own the rights to the Hollow Kingdom. It's been a while since I last typed that.

**I'll Try**

When Aganir Agmun learned about the circumstances behind the goblin King's marriage, to say he was furious was an understatement. The goblin King hadn't even been looking for a wife, and one stumbles right into his arms, _kissing_ him even. Sure she was drunk, but what women would _want_ to kiss a goblin?

Why couldn't she have stumbled into his arms, and kissed him? That he would understand, he was an_ elf_ after all. His father being still alive was an issue, but nothing too big. He needn't be dead for Agmun to marry his wife, it was just against tradition, that's all. And if that blasted goblin could break tradition, than so could he.

So, when his father finally did die, Aganir Agmun set about finding his wife. He was determined that she be far better, and certainly prettier, than the one the Goblin King had. That would put the smug goblin in his place. Sure the goblin's wife had walked straight into his arms, but Agmun's would be far superior in every way. And she would be captured in the traditional way that a bride should. Then _he_ would be the smug one.

In later years he would wonder if all young males were as foolish as he was at the time.

* * *

Edith Peterson couldn't believe the people who dare to call themselves her friends. All had been so determined to go hiking and camping in the wilderness, just like their ancestors had when they still lived in caves and the beautiful outdoors. Except she was the only one to show up at the Reserve, all the others having chickened out, citing all the weird happenings there. No matter. Edith wasn't the type to let that get her down. She would just continue with the hike, if only by herself.

Being alone was something she was used to. Her father had left her mother and her after becoming bored by them. Her mother had left her after discovering she had no skills which allowed her to look after herself and daughter, sending her daughter to a live with an elderly aunt instead.

Edith wasn't resentful of being by herself. Instead she thought it empowered her, by learning what life was truly like at a young age. She learned that men would leave a women once they grew tired. She learned that the only one a women could depend on was herself. That it was best to be self-reliant, not needing a man to depend on.

Growing up in the late 1960's, Edith quickly embraced the feminist movement. She also became a lover of the outdoors, where one's knowledge and skills were put to the ultimate test of survival. The Reserve seemed like a perfect to test these skills as huge and unexplored as it was. And being alone without calling on anybody else for help, would most certainly be the ultimate test.

For the first couple of days, nothing eventful happened, other than the odd feeling of being watched. It was the third night though, that proved to be interesting.

* * *

It had been three days since Aganir Agmun, more commonly known as Nir, had captured his bride. A beautiful redhead who shared his passion for the outdoors. At the time, he was certain that there was no more better bride than she was. Now, he was starting to doubt himself. Three days of being given the silent treatment would do that to an elf. It was almost enough to cause the elf king to ponder giving her the drink to take away her memories like his ancestors had done. Almost. He had not quite forgotten the peril the drink had once caused his people.

He had watched her for several nights before finally approaching her. They shared a pleasant conversation about living in the outdoors vs. the city, while she unknowingly helped him pick the flowers for her ceremony. At first she didn't understand what had happened, insisting that he had to be mistaken and to let her go. Soon she was giving threats, and had even managed a couple well-aimed kicks and punches at the elf. But those made no difference to the leashing spell that was on her, dragging her with him toward the elf camp no matter how hard she fought and screamed.

Once there, more yelling ensued, but the truth of the situation began to slowly dawn on her, that she was stuck there against her will. The elves danced under the full moon to celebrate the new King's Wife, while she stubbornly refused. Instead, she tested the boundary limit of the camp until exhaustion set in, and Nir had to carry her back to the tent to rest. While it annoyed Nir that she wouldn't join the dancing, he also knew it was best to let her get it out of her system. She would settle down in time, just like his own mother had.

After realizing that she couldn't make it out of the camp, she went on what she called, a 'hunger strike', until he let her go. Nir then ordered her to accept food from her, an action that earned him quite the glare for doing so. She begged the other elves to help her, only to discover none understood what she was saying. Nir explained that English was banned in the camp, and it was time for her to learn Elvish.

Thinking that would settle things and she would finally act like a proper Elf King's Wife, Nir couldn't have been more wrong. She decided on another tactic, silence. And unfortunately, the seven stars spell didn't seem to feel that ordering her to speak to him was reasonable. He detested the rare occasion when magic refused to work just how he wanted it to.

Nir didn't understand what was going on with his wife. She was married to him, the Elf King. He provided her with food, shelter, and everything she could want. He brought her flowers, and even the books his mother had loved, and yet she still refused to speak to him. He begged, pleaded, and even threatened, but she refused to respond. What made it worse was that she would speak to the other elves in the camp, in English that they did not understand. Nir would then have to remind her to not speak English, but she paid him no heed and would continue to so.

A couple more days and Nir was about to pull his hair out in frustration. Even the elves had picked up on his mood. It was then one of his advisers suggested trying a different approach with his wife. What better way to understand a human, than to have another human talk to her? And there just so happened to be a such a human living conveniently nearby.

* * *

When Nir had lead her away from the camp, Edith had thought that she had won at last, he was about to free her. However, it soon became apparent that was not the case. She tried to run away, but could never get more than four feet away from him before getting dragged back to him. There was also the fact that he seemed to be leading her further into the woods instead of away from them, toward humans. Several times Edith had caught the question, 'Where are you taking me?' on her lips. But she would not give him the satisfaction of hearing her talk to him. She'd rather die than surrender.

Edith was rather surprised at the end location, a clearing surrounded by a circle of trees. The idea of him killing her had crossed her mind at one point. She decided that if that was the case, she would not go down without a fight. Once they entered the clearing, Edith saw a woman talking with an owl? No, that wasn't possible. Owls couldn't grow that big. Could they?

Nir turned to Edith and said, "The Goblin King and I have some things to discuss, and I'm leaving you with his wife, Aggie. Hopefully she can talk some sense into your head. Just because you might not see me, doesn't mean you can flee."

As soon as he left of course, Edith tried to flee the circle, but couldn't make it pass the first ring of trees.

"There's a leashing spell on you," said a voice from behind. The woman from earlier was looking at Edith like she was a specimen to study. Edith felt if anybody should be studied, it was the other woman. Her hair was dyed several unnatural colors and was sticking out at odd angles. She was covered in gaudy jewelry, and had a golden snake tattooed on her arm. Yet, she spoke in a normal tone, as if there was nothing out of the usual.

Impatient with waiting for Edith to respond she stuck out her hand and said, "I'm Aggie, the Goblin King's Wife. It's nice talking to you, I haven't talked to another human in over a year."

Edith shook Aggie's hand and asked, "Are you under a leashing spell too?"

Aggie merely laughed. "Of course not, love. I have no reason to run away."

Edith frowned at that statement. No reason to run away? She had every reason in the world, being forced to marry somebody against her will. "You want to be married to him, against you're will?"

"Oh," said Aggie, "I suppose my circumstances were a bit different than yours. You see, Marak wasn't looking for a bride the night he married me. I stumbled into his arms rather drunk at the time. My fiance had just dumped me for my sister the night before our wedding, for someone more, 'normal'. And I've been happy with the goblins ever since then."

Edith supposed, she might feel different about her situation if she had been in Aggie's. Though she did agree with Aggie's fiance about the 'normal' part. Aggie was anything but normal. But Edith wasn't in her Aggie's situation, and wanted to run away, far from the elves.

Seeing the down look on Edith's face, Aggie put her hand gently on Edith's shoulder and said, "The first couple days are the hardest. It'll get better, eventually."

That was something that Edith did not like hearing. "Get better?" she fumed at Aggie. "I don't want it to get, better, I want to go home." Then she pointed a finger accusingly at Aggie. "You, that's the reason he wanted me to meet you, so you would convince me to be some docile little obedient wife, well I won't! I won't obey him and I will continue to fight!"

Aggie took Edith's outburst in stride. Her sister used to throw similar tantrums when they were younger, and it was usually Aggie who calmed her down. "Fight what, dear?"

"Fight them. Did you know he want even let me speak my own language? That he insists on feeding me by hand like some sort of animal, and rubs my feet and combs my hair like a child?"

"Why, yes I do, and so would you if you bothered to learn anything about them. You're critical of them not accepting your culture, but yet you do the same to theirs. If you even bothered to understand them, you would know that an obedient docile little wife is the last thing an Elf King wants, since it nearly caused their extinction at one point."

Edith paused. Till then, she had been pacing back and forth like a caged animal, fuming the whole time while ranting to Aggie. But now, she was beginning to realize that Aggie had some good points. How could she realistically expect Nir and the elves to speak English, just because she refused to speak Elvish? It was impractical. It was _their_ culture she was living in after all, and refusing to learn about it wouldn't change her situation a bit.

If anything, it was harming her. Hadn't she once insisted to one of her classmates at university who was complaining about learning French, that the best way to truly understand a culture was by learning their language? By learning their history, traditions, and values? And here she was ignoring what she preached. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black.

Aggie continued, while Edith contemplated this revelation. "No, Nir didn't arrange this meeting for me to convince you to be an obedient wife. Nir arranged it because Nir was worried about you. You refuse to eat unless he orders you too, and refuse to talk to him at all. He's worried about you, and thought you might talk to a human since you refused to talk to him. Elves are social little things, and it must be driving him crazy. Well, it has to be driving him crazy for him to ask the Goblin King for help," she said with a laugh at the end.

Confused, Edith asked, "Why would he worry about me? All he wants is the heir, and for that he could force himself on me."

Horrified at what Edith was implying, Aggie responded, "Is that what you think? That he just wants an heir from you?"

"Of course," answered Edith, "He said that the Elf King could only mate with a human, and that's why he married me."

"Edith," began Aggie once more, "while it is true that the Elf King can only mate with a human, there's a lot more to it than simply doing the act. Elves are emotional creatures to begin with, and have to be happy for a child to conceive. When it comes to the heir, the King's Wife's happiness is even more important. Until she settles in or down, no heir will be born."

Edith rolled her eyes. "So that's it, he wants me to be happy enough to have the heir, and once he gets it, he'll toss me aside like an old toy," she said with disdain; while also thinking of the way her own father had set her mother aside, once he had grown tired of her.

Aggie took a deep breath in; she could see this was going to take a while. "Don't be silly. While that may be true in the past with the Elf King's Wife, it's not anymore. She's the one human most elves interact with; all their knowledge about humans comes from her. She is the mother of the heir; what he learns from her will help him with dealing with humans in the future, and his own wife some day."

Once again, Edith wasn't impressed. "But they're so silly. All they do are frivolous things like dancing, singing, joking. They never do any work."

"Well of course they don't, love. They're elves, they're suppose to be silly, it's their nature. Elves don't do serious well, take a look at their chronicles someday when you can read Elvish, and you'll see what I mean. They have magic to do any serious work, leaving the rest of the time free for dancing."

Edith paused once more, considering what she had just learned. She had seen very little magic in the camp, most of which came from what Nir had done to her, or ordered her to do. There was the one time Nir dragged her out of the tent and some elves had stripped her of her clothes and put gunk stuff on her feet, but most of the time she refused to go outside at all, preferring to spend her time inside the tent, while giving Nir the cold shoulder.

She may have peeked out once or twice out of curiosity to see what was going on, but she certainly wasn't about to join in on the dancing. Aggie looked like the type who would do such a thing, but Edith wasn't. There were so many things she could be doing with her time, making the world a better place, supporting women's rights, cleaning up the environment, not dancing around under the stars. Though, she had to admit, it was very beautiful to watch.

"What do you want Edith? What will make you happy?" asked Aggie abruptly. "Why are you so angry?"

Angry? Edith wasn't angry, she was furious. She wanted to go home. "I want out of this marriage, the one I don't have a say in."

Aggie smiled at her. "You and I both know Nir's not going to let you go. As for having a say, you do have one. Marriage is all about compromise, give and take. Marriages where one partner is unequal, never end happily. Yes, Nir married you without your consent. If he asked you right there and then, you would have said no, and he couldn't risk you leaving the Reserve before marrying you. Yes, it's a cruel tradition to capture a wife, but you do have rights, Edith. It's just a matter of figuring out what they are."

By that point, Nir and the owl creature had returned to the circle of trees where Aggie and Edith where. Aggie embraced the owl creature. Marak was what Aggie had called him, and Edith presumed he was a goblin, or some such creature. Nir just grabbed Edith's hand quietly and said, "We're going back to camp."

As Edith left the tree circle, never once did she try to flee from Nir. Instead she was thinking, over what Aggie had said about Edith figuring out her rights, what she wanted from her marriage.

Nir meanwhile, was happy that his wife had stopped fleeing from him, but was still concerned since she still wasn't talking to him. Perhaps letting her to speak to the Goblin King's Wife wasn't such a great idea after all. If it didn't work, the Goblin King would certainly never let him live it down.

After quite some time, Edith finally spoke. "I will learn Elvish," she stated, while Nir's head jerked up in shock. Not only was she speaking to him, but it was about finally learning Elvish. She continued, "But in return, the elves have to learn English." Then as an afterthought she added, "And Goblin."

"What?" said a flustered Nir. "Why should the elves learn English, and Goblin of all things?"

"Because, learning another culture's language is the basis for understanding them. Why should I understand your culture,when you won't even understand mine?"

Nir pondered this, and the request made by his wife. Other wives in the past, including his own mother, had tried to get the elves to learn English. His predecessors deemed it unnecessary, and vital to the further existence of elves to learn their own language, the old ways before the Elf Harrowing. Nir himself was only allowed to learn English because it would be the only way for him to first communicate with his wife, explaining the situation she was now in.

His wife. The human now standing before him, under the moonlight, finally speaking to him. Perhaps going to the Goblin King wasn't such a waste after all. "Once again, I ask, why should I allow this?"

"Because," she said locking his dark eyes with her blue, "marriage is a compromise, it doesn't go one way. If you want something from me, you must give me something in return." She looked down at the faint outline of flowers on her hand, then back up. "And since you won't give me what I really want, give me something else instead."

When asked by his advisers later why he would agree to such a demand, he would tell them to try having a wife who refused to speak. It was quite maddening, and after nearly a month of such behavior, Nir was ready to agree to anything. Besides letting her go of course. That was truly the maddest idea of them all.

"Fine," Nir conceded, enjoying the smile spreading on his wife's face. The first smile she had ever given him. "You teach the elves your English, and they'll teach you Elvish. We'll start there before beginning with Goblin. Since we are negotiating, I have some demands of my own."

Edith who had been smiling at that small win, suddenly felt her stomach drop from under her. What would he ask of her?

"I want you to join the elves and I when we dance under the stars. I want you to eat food without me ordering you to."

"That's two demands," Edith pointed out. "So I'm allowed to have two in return."

Nir nodded, waiting for her to elaborate. Now that she was finally speaking to him, he'd let her say whatever she wanted to.

"I want to meet more with Aggie."

"Easily done," answered Nir. "It's tradition on each full moon for the wives to gather and introduce the heirs to each other. What's your other demand?"

"I want you to ask me to marry you."

The Elf King was taken aback from this rather unusual request. Meeting with the one human who might understand what she was going through, Nir could comprehend. But asking his Wife to marry him, when they were already married seemed absurd. Where all humans this confusing?

"Why should I ask you that when we are already married?" asked the puzzled elf.

"I want a say. I didn't the first time. So ask me."

Deciding to play along, Nir asked, "Will you marry me?"

"No."

"No, what do you mean no? What was the point of having me ask you, if you were only going to say no?" said Nir who was starting to become enraged. He was starting to understand why his ancestors gave their wives the memory potion instead of bothering to understand them. Human females were possessed the most complicated minds on the planet.

"Because, if you keep asking, one day I'll say yes."

Then without waiting for a response, Edith moved past him, leading the way back to the elf camp.

And suddenly, Nir finally understood why his grandfather and his father before him, had stopped giving their wives the memory potion. Yes, it was to prevent the switching of heirs, but it was for another reason as well. Because as perplexing and confusing as the human female was, the challenge of understanding them was worth it. With no magic that could be worked to make the arduous task easier, only a truly intelligent and caring elf king was worthy of such a challenge. A challenge that Nir was looking forward to.

* * *

In years to come, there would be many fights, more instances of silent treatments. Fights such as Edith insisting she was capable of feeding herself, or concerning the living conditions of two girls. But there would also be understanding, and a day when Edi, as she became called by the elves, would say yes. A day when Nir would complete the ultimate challenge, and hope that his son would manage to do the same.

****Author's Note****

Well I'm back, for a bit. I've been busy school and other projects, but the inspiration struck to write this after two things.

The first being I received an awesome message from PrincessQF about how much she enjoyed After and wondering if I would ever get around to writing more about Alex and Finn. While I do have an idea for a one-shot, I realized I couldn't write that before writing about Edi. The second being that JayLah sent me a message that the Ever After series was on tvtropes. Basically somebody liked (I'm going with liked) the series enough to recommend it, and analyze it.

The combination of those two things motivated me to write this. And given that it was timed around finals, just like Ever was when I wrote it last semester, seemed like a nice fit.

Reviews are always appreciated. I hope to have the Alex and Finn one-shot up eventually. Hopefully before my next round of finals.


	3. We Belong Together

**We Belong Together**

Evening was falling upon the restaurant and patrons were waiting patiently to be seated. Given that it was close to Valentine's Day, most were young couples out on the town celebrating the romantic event. The restaurant was considered the best in town, and as such reservations were hard to come by, making the event even more special. Once inside, patrons were greeted with glittering chandeliers, ornate murals, and delicious (but pricey) food. There was even a dance floor with live music for the couples to enjoy while waiting for their food to be served.

The women had their hair swept up with sparkling earrings and necklaces to match their sparkling dresses and sparkling shoes. The men had on their best suits and twirled with their partners on the dance floor. Older couples looked on wistfully, reminded how they were once young, foolish, and in love. As for the young couples, they were too busy gazing starry-eyed into the eyes of their lover to notice what was going on around them. The various staff members also picked up on the romantic atmosphere. Some were counting the hours until they could be with their own love, while others were wondering if cupid was waiting just around the corner for them. One such staffer, a young waitress, kept sneaking glances at a certain couple. To be more precise, the attractive young man that was sitting at the table.

What caught her eye at first were his striking good looks. Soulful blue eyes that seemed to suck you in, rich golden hair that gleamed in the light, and a face that looked as if it had been painted by Michelangelo himself. For a brief second she thought that his looks were too unearthly, and entertained the idea that he might be a vampire. Although the idea made her skin tingle, she knew such a creature only existed in books, sadly. Though a girl could dream.

His date though, in her opinion, was not worthy of his beauty. True, some might consider her pretty, but it was more of a girl-next-door pretty. He deserved a supermodel, not some regular everyday girl. The waitress even considered herself prettier than the girl and wondered what he saw in her. And wouldn't it just be lovely if they broke up that night. After which he would probably need a shoulder to cry on, and she would be there waiting for him, and he would realize that he was in love with_ her_, and not the other girl. In her heart she knew that the idea was absurd; almost as absurd as the thought that he might be a supernatural being. Things like that didn't happen in real life, but it was still nice play what if in order to pass her time.

When he placed his order, he spoke in an angelic voice, and pronounced the foreign words perfectly. Most people (including herself) would stumble over the words, or just have ordered the food in English. His date tried at first to do the same, but after a couple attempts gave up and asked for what he was having. The fact that she was obviously not as worldly as him, was just another strike against her, the waitress thought.

While waiting for their food, the couple decided to join the dancers. The waitress was busy taking orders and delivering food, but whenever she could manage it, she tried to look for him. He could dance just as gracefully as she imagined, while his partner seemed to have two left feet and was constantly stepping on his. That pleased the waitress. His date, whoever she was, was clearly not his match like the waitress could be.

When she delivered their food (it took everything she had to resist the urge to spill it all over the girl), she secretly enjoyed discovering that the girl was hesitant of the food. She picked at it, choosing which bits she was brave enough to try. He on the other hand, ate everything off his plate. The smile he gave her when she cleared the tables made her bold enough to leave her number on the check, just in case he should change his mind. After they paid and left she noticed that there wasn't a tip on the table. The shrew he was with was probably responsible for that. She had to be either too cheap, or knew that the waitress was more of a match than she was.

Well she may not have gotten a monetary tip, but she did get a tip of sorts. She managed a quick glance at his name on the credit card as she made her way to the register. Eugene Lawrence Finnigan. Eugene was a horrible name for such a gorgeous guy. Lawrence sounded so much better. It sounded grand and elegant, far better than Eugene or Finnigan. That's what she would remember him forever as Lawrence.

That night as she fell asleep, she dreamed of her Lawrence, an other worldly creature whisking her off from her dull life. The next morning she would wonder if she could manage to write a book about Lawrence, featuring herself as his love interest. That way she would somehow manage to get a happily ever after with her Lawrence.

* * *

"Finn, what are you doing?"

Finn had been pulling out a five dollar bill to leave as a tip for the waitress. While the standard was to tip fifteen percent, Finn believed in tipping based on performance. Why pay a lazy bum the same amount as an excellent server, like the waitress had been? But after hearing the tone in Alex's voice, Finn was starting to second guess this action. "I was going to tip her," was the response he finally settled on.

"Are you crazy? She was practically flirting with you the whole entire time. If you tip her a lot, you'll just be encouraging her into thinking she has a chance."

"She was?" asked Finn, genuinely surprised. He had thought he was getting better at the whole, 'flirting thing', but it seemed like he still had a way to go.

Instead of being mad, Alex just laughed at him. "Yes she was. Look, she even left her phone number on the ticket for you."

"Oh. So no tip then? That seems a bit harsh."

"Flirting with you and acting like I wasn't here was harsh. Now let's go or we'll be late for the show, and we both know how much you hate being late to places."

Finn nodded in agreement. "If you're late, you might as well have never shown up at all."

* * *

The show, was in fact some play at the university that Alex had never heard of or cared about. The only reason she was there was because it seemed like the right thing to do as evident by the numerous couples since she recognized in the audience who had also been at the restaurant earlier. There was the women with the big ugly bird on her hat, the one that was completely wasted, and yet another that wearing a dress that was clearly too small for her. Their men weren't any better. One was flirting with the drunk, another was flirting with the flask he had snuck in, and the last looked as if he wanted to be shot. Alex felt about the same way.

It's not that she didn't like going out with Finn, she really did. Ever since they had realized their true feelings for each other after the lake incident, they had started going out. But it was very awkward. Dressing up in clothes she hated, going to fancy restaurants and seeing shows just weren't her style. She only did so because that's what dating was, or so she thought. And she was starting to wonder if this dating thing was really for her.

She looked over at Finn and noticed that his face just looked as bored as hers did.

"Finn, do you want to leave?"

"Oh no, I'm fine," he insisted.

Alex paused and rethought her statement. "Let me put it this way: my dress is itching me, these people bother me with all their angst, and I'm starving since I don't like eating stuff I can't pronounce. I want to go_ now_."

"Oh, thank goodness," said Finn with a sigh of relief. "I thought you were enjoying it, so I didn't want to say anything."

"Finn, I haven't been enjoying any of this. The only reason why I was going along with it is because I thought you liked it."

"So want to head back to the dorms and order a pizza? The lake should be solid enough for us to race the cars on it. I think I managed to figure out how to use a spell so it'll act like tiny snow chains to help give the tires some traction."

"And can we do the laser beam thing to the ducks? It's always funny watching the way they scatter on the ice."

Finn nodded. "Of course. I don't see why Candace always made such a fuss about this dating thing. That sounds more fun than staying here or going dancing."

"She wouldn't be Candace if she wasn't make some kind of a fuss. Besides, I thought elves liked to dance."

"They do. It's alright, but I much rather race remote control cars with you."

Alex smiled. Perhaps this whole dating thing wasn't so bad after all.

****Author's Note****

Thanks goes to JayLah and AwkwardedOut for reviews. Though this is a series of slowly uploaded one-shots and not a planned story, it's still nice getting reviews.

I've been planning this chapter for a while, and wanted it to be close to Valentine's Day due to the theme. I have another chapter in the works that feature a young Marak and Nir getting into mischief. Hopefully it'll be up in the next month or so.

Thanks for reading and if you can, leave a review!


	4. Best of Friends

I don't own the rights to the Hollow Kingdom.

**Best of Friends**

"This is boring," commented Suen as he sent tiny twigs hurtling in the air toward Chameleontail's stone fort with his index finger.

Not even blinking, Chameleontail made a motion with his hand, causing the twigs to stop in midair, before dropping to the ground. "What do you propose we do then?"

Suen sighed. "It's too bad we can't actually use magic on each other. It'd be a lot more fun."

Upon hearing the idea, Chameleontail's face broke out into a huge grin. Suen knew that grin. It was Chameleontail's I'm-up-to-no-good grin. "Who says we can't?"

"We're in the Truce Circle. No magic can be used to harm each other," pointed out Suen. "Besides, I doubt our mothers would approve."

That didn't deter Chameleontail. "Which is why we distract them so we can escape the Truce Circle."

Sighing, Suen listened to his plan. Though he would never admit it, Chameleontail could come up with the best ideas. Throughly enjoyable, but completely wicked ideas.

* * *

"Mummy," asked Marak as polite as he could be, "may Suen and I have a chocolate?"

"Of course love," Aggie answered, pulling out a pouch. Reaching inside she fingered two small chocolates, giving one to each boy. Both quickly consumed their treat before running off.

Edith turned toward Aggie and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Calm down Edith, it's only chocolate. They're Marak's favorites, imported all the way from Switzerland."

Edith didn't care if they were imported all the way from Switzerland or if they were Marak's favorites. She cared about her son. "Chocolate is not part of an elf's diet. It shouldn't even be part of a child's diet."

Aggie however didn't understand what the big fuss was about. "It's just a small piece of chocolate, I fail to see why you're getting so upset."

"So upset? You gave my son a sugar filled fest without my consent. He's suppose to be the next elf king, not the next overweight mouth filled with cavities king," shrieked Edith.

Waving a hand at her outburst, Aggie replied,"One piece chocolate won't harm him."

"No, it'll just turn him into a wild child like your son."

"What is wrong with my son?" asked Aggie whose voice had suddenly taken on an icy tone. She was fine with being insulted, but her son was off limits.

"You let him run about doing whatever crazy stunt his heart desires!"

In a low growl Aggie said, "There's nothing wrong with that. He learns from experience and has his magic to protect him."

"Except for the destruction he leaves in his wake."

"What kind of king will your son be if you coddle and protect him all your life?" Aggie retorted.

"What kind of king will your son be if there's no kingdom left to rule?" shot back Edith. "It shouldn't be that much of a surprise considering his mother is nothing but a drunk hippie!"

By this point, Aggie had resigned herself that there was no talking sense to the other woman.

"Don't pretend that you're any better, you hypocritical banshee!"

Feeling the same way, Edith said, "I do not have to stand for this! Come on Suen, let's go back to camp."

"Marak we're going back to the caves."

Both women looked around for their sons. Neither were in the Truce Circle.

* * *

"This isn't as much fun as I thought it would be," complained Chameleontail.

"Yeah, our magics cancel each other out," agreed Suen.

While their mothers were too busy arguing about how to properly raise children, the boys had managed to sneak out of the Circle. Once out, they had no problem getting past the guards on patrol. However, after several minutes of throwing spells at each other with no results, they managed to make an unfortunate discovery. That since they were the next great kings of their race, their magic was at the same level. Which meant they had tricked their mothers, left the circle, and risked punishment for nothing. And risking punishment for nothing was the worst thing ever in their mind.

"So what should we do now?" asked Suen.

Chameleontail pondered the possibilities. "We could go down to the village and mess with some villagers."

"I heard some ugly humans tramping through the woods earlier," suggested Suen.

"I know!" declared Chameleontail suddenly. "Let's have a contest to see who can capture a bride first!"

"Aren't we a little young?" pointed out Suen.

"We won't actually marry them. But just see who could succeed at capturing a bride first."

Suen mulled it over and considered it another one of Chameleontail's great ideas. Not that he would ever admit it _out loud_ to him. "I don't have to eat human food again, do I? That chocolate stuff was weird. I like elf food better."

His friend just rolled his eyes. "You're such an elf. Now come on, before we our fathers find out and ruin the fun."

* * *

It took a while for the realization that their sons were gone to sink in. Both women called their names, and scanned through the darkness for any clue of their signs whereabouts. Unfortunately, there were none. If the boys had been taken by force, they would have fought back, alerting their mothers and area guards. That was not the case. The boys had simply been there one moment, and were gone the next. Which meant they left the Circle voluntarily. Which meant when their mothers got a hold of them, they would be facing a punishment of the worst kind.

"This is all your fault," complained Edith as she traipsed through the woods with Aggie.

A couple times, guards of both races would appraoch them to make sure they were alright. When that happened both women would dismiss them by saying they wanted a walk and there was nothing to worry about. While Aggie and Edith had considered asking them for help, they quickly realized that the guards would be no match for their future kings. That and they would be required to report the missing boys to the current kings. Neither of the women were ready to admit to their husbands that they were too busy arguing (again) to notice that their sons had snuck off right under their noses. Their husbands would never let them live it down. Especially since the boys didn't even have to use magic to do so since they were forbidden from performing magic on their mothers. Instead they had tricked their mothers into fighting, something even humans could fight back against.

Aggie disagreed with Edith. "You're the one who made such a fuss, just like they planned on."

"If you hadn't given them chocolate in the first place this would never have happened. Your son was probably the one who had the brilliant idea."

Aggie couldn't deny that. Chameleontail did take after his mother when it came to thinking up wild ideas. So she replied, "But your son went along with it and probably encouraged it."

Similar to Aggie, Edith couldn't deny that. While she knew her son was the type who would never initiate the boys antics, he was the type to egg Chameleontail on and offer suggestions on how to improve their next crazy idea. Luckily she was saved from answering due to the sight before them.

* * *

In their haste of declaring a challenge, there was a certain element that both boys had overlooked. Humans, especially young ones, are not nocturnal creatures. Elves are nocturnal, so Suen had simply assumed that humans would be awake as well. While goblins usually lived during the day, Chameleontail was used to staying up late once a month and had forgotten what time it was.

They were not deterred. So what if sweet little girls were asleep in their bed? It would just make it that much more challenging. Using their magic they could send a household asleep and slip in, or send a dream and cause their prey to come to them. Then the problem was simply a matter of knowing what houses had sleeping little girls in them.

Suen decided to make one little girl come to him by enchanting her dreams. Why should he work so hard, when she could come to him? The house he picked was painted white and pink curtains in one of the windows upstairs. The house was so cute and girly, he surely couldn't go wrong.

Chalemeleontail preferred a more hands on approach. He sent entire households to sleep while searching room by room for a suitable girl. It took four houses before he found a pair of sisters he was trying to decide between. According to the letters hanging on the wall, their names were 'Martha' and 'Abigail'. They looked to be about a couple years apart, with Abigail looking to be the oldest. He was just about to decide between the two when Martha suddenly sat straight up in bed.

At first Chameleontail thought she might of woken up, and so he blended into the background. Martha nearly walked into her closet door until Chameleontail steered her away from it. From the way she moved (and the near collision with the door) made it quite evident that she wasn't awake. While she could be sleepwalking, Chameleontail suspected another culprit.

"Stupid elf," he muttered under his breath. "I was just about to pick her too."

Actually he was just about to make up his mind of who to pick, but he was quite sure that he would have chosen Martha. Deciding that he wasn't going to let the elf get her, he picked her up and went to walk out the front door. He couldn't wait till the elf saw what he carried in his arms. So lost in his daydreams, he almost didn't notice the flickering out of the corner of his eye. Stopping to see what it was, he nearly dropped Martha. Flames were shooting out of the upstairs window of the house next door. One of the same houses whose inhabitants he had sent into a deep sleep not so long ago.

Realizing the severity of the situation, Chameleontail set Martha on her feet, and then ordered her to wake up her family incase the flames decided to consume her house as well. He did take care to ensure that she would forget everything about him.

Next, he moved out onto the streets and saw Suen entering the house that was ablaze. While the bright light from the fire hurt his eyes, he also couldn't just stand by idly while watching the blaze consume the house and family inside. Not to mention the scolding he would receive from his parents for doing so. At least if he tried to help, his punishment might be lightened. Especially since it was the goblins fault.

Not to be outdone, Chameleontail raced into the house after Suen.

"Did you even think to check on what they were doing before you sent them asleep?" hissed Suen.

"Did you even stop to think that calling a girl to you who was half asleep was a dangerous thing to do? If it wasn't for me she would have walked right into her closet door. And that's before she would have probably broken her neck while trying to do down the stairs."

"Fine, neither of us win."

"I disagree. She walked right into my arms. I won," boasted Chameleontail.

The smell of smoke filled their noses and the boys realized they had more important things to do than argue about who won. Shielding his eyes, Suen opened the bedroom door so Chameleontail could see how bad the fire was. Goblin eyes were sensitive to light, but not as sensitive as the eyes elves had. He breathed a sigh of relief once the door was open. There was a fire, but not as bad as he thought. A man had apparently fallen asleep while smoking a cigar which had fallen into a waste can. There it consumed paper until the flame grew high enough to ignite the drapes on the windows. That was why the fire had seemed so bright next door. But that wouldn't be for long. The fire was nearly done with the drapes and was ready to spread to the furniture and carpet.

"You deal with the fire, and I'll deal with the humans," ordered Suen. Chameleontail was about to argue and question why the elf was in charge until he remembered the seriousness of the situation.

Suen levitated the man out of the bedroom while Chameleontail called out, "His wife was in the kitchen, and his son was in the room closest to the stairs." At this point it was better to help the elf than hinder him and have him spend precious time searching from to room to room for those who were asleep.

"Thanks," said Suen, rather grateful for the help. The goblin might as well make himself useful since he was the one who had caused all this in the first place.

Continuing to mutter about stupid elves, Chameleontail swiftly considered his options. Gathering a rain cloud would take to long, not to mention garner unwanted attention. And then there was the pesky fact that he didn't have any experience with it. Then he realized that it was 1970's. Humans had water in their homes now. He turned his attention to the bathroom, using his magic to break the pipes that connected to the wall. Then with a wave of his hand, he pulled the water out and moved it to the fire in the bedroom that was now almost engulfed in flames. Chameleon let loose the water that to soak the blaze, while continuing to pull water from the source that fed the pipes. At the moment he didn't care where it came from as long as it came fast.

A couple minutes later he was soaked and rather exhausted, but at least the fire was out, along with the family.

"Come on," said Suen from the hallway. "I got the family out, but they've woken up and are trying to figure out what happened. Let's go before they decide to investigate."

Chameleontail nodded, too tired to do much more, and made his way out the back door with Suen. A quick drying spells would get the water out of his clothes and maybe a memory spell for their mothers so they wouldn't ask what mischief their sons had gotten into. His mother couldn't tell on him for using magic if she didn't remember. These were special circumstances. The boys weren't even a couple feet into the woods before they realized whatever luck they had was gone.

Before them on the path stood their fathers.

* * *

Their fathers had their arms crossed and were looking rather anger. The boys gulped, preparing themselves for what was about to come next.

"What were you thinking?" asked Marak and Nir in unison.

"Tricking your mothers," began Marak.

"And sneaking into the village and starting a fire," finished Nir.

Both boys looked at the ground in shame, but their fathers weren't over yet.

"And we couldn't be prouder," said Marak in a gentle tone.

"Yes, well done, both of you," commented Nir.

It took a couple seconds for the words to sink in. Both boys tentatively raised their heads, revealing confused looks on their faces. Suen was the first to speak. "What do you mean you couldn't be prouder?"

His father clapped him on the back. "Not even ten, and you're already practicing how to get a bride."

Marak nodded. "And while things did get out of hand, you two worked together to fix things instead of panicking. Both are admirable, but rare traits to be found in future kings, especially young ones."

Chameleontail was relieved that he wasn't in too much trouble, but was still curious. "How did you know what we did?"

"Well, the guards were rather worried when your mothers seemed to be searching be for something, and you two weren't in sight. I used the water mirror to see what mischief you two had gotten into, and once I'd located you, I went to Nir," answered Marak.

"At the time we thought we would have to clean up your mess, but you managed to work things out all by yourselves."

"Now," said Marak, "Let's go find your mothers."

* * *

Each mother was reunited with her son in a tearful reunion while their fathers looked on. Once each boy was determined to be safe, the yelling began.

"How could you do such a thing!"

"What were you thinking by sneaking off?"

"It was his idea, wasn't it?"

"You could have been seen, or injured!"

"When your father gets a hold of you..."

And so on. Both boys had been warned by their fathers to not say a word, and let their mothers scold and chide them. Normally both parents work together when it came to disciplining the young kings, but no so in this instance. The mothers were human, and therefore did not fully understand that it was important to encourage their sons to capture a wife, or work well with their fellow king, for both races.

But right now, the mothers were being mothers. Scared and frightened for their missing sons, then angry after learning what happened. Having mothers who cared for their strange, magical, sons was just as important to the survival of the races as it was for the kings to get along or capture brides. Their methods might differ, and they might not always get along with one another, but at the end of the day they did agree on one thing.

Leaving their sons alone together unsupervised, should be avoided at all costs. Who knew what further mischief they could get into?

****Author's Note****

I would first like to thank PrincessQF for leaving a review last chapter.

I finally got around to finishing this chapter and posting it because I thought it'd be a fun April Fool's update. Marak and Nir getting into trouble, what's not to like?

I don't know what I'll be posting next in this story, but if there are any characters or certain things you want to see, let me know, and I'll do what I can.

Thanks for reading, and if you can, leave a review!


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